


Maple Leaf Blues

by Desidera



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Ficlet, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-02
Updated: 2020-11-02
Packaged: 2021-03-09 09:28:47
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,898
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27348910
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Desidera/pseuds/Desidera
Summary: "A flurry of colorful spiky leaves ripped from the tree spun in a maddening dance around him. His hand shot up and grabbed one of the leaves out of the air, clenching his fingers around it like a cage."Two moments with the Kaiba brothers before Seto's trip to the afterlife. Autumn. Maple leaves. Yearning.
Relationships: Atem/Kaiba Seto, Kaiba Seto/Yami Yuugi | Atem
Comments: 5
Kudos: 19





	Maple Leaf Blues

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Nenya85](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nenya85/gifts).



> This is a thank-you-gift to Nenya85 for proofreading "All that I can get", and for writing all those amazing stories of hers.

Timeline: after the events of Dark Side of Dimensions but before Kaiba's trip to the afterlife

Nature. Away from the relentless noises of cities and humans. Trees, meadows, small brooks, a butterfly dancing on a whisper of wind. Finding calm in the ever-changing cycle of growing and fading, deeply immersed in the sounds of life.   
  
Nature was none of this to Seto Kaiba. It was with unease that he surrendered himself to the whims of the weather. The murky darkness of a forest that could not be penetrated even by Kaiba Corp.'s finest satellites leaving him stranded without GPS reception? Certainly not. Waiting for a seed to grow was an act that he could fathom but seeing it swept away in a torrent of rain was nothing less than a personal insult. Nothing seemed controllable, so much was happening without anyone's involvement. Being used to technology obeying his commands with  the exact  same precision he had programmed into it, it was hard to accept the inaccuracy that was the very definition of the word "natural".   
  
It was a stormy October day. His long coat was billowing with the gusts. The skies were heavily laden with thick gray clouds but here and there a ray of sunlight burst through, bathing the botanical gardens in a golden glow that made the looming clouds appear a dark violet in contrast. It looked like the darkness of the shadow realm was closing in on the golden pools of light. For once, Seto Kaiba felt that nature saluted his mood, breathing in the dystopian ambiance as he walked a narrow stone path leading past a gentle waterfall.   
  
Mokuba was next to him, still taking two steps for one of his long strides, but that was the only thing that reminded Seto of the bounding heap of energy he had once been following through those gardens. How many years had it been? Not so many that this much should have changed, but here he was, his little brother, grown up enough to subtly try taking care of him instead. Dragging him out of the house to a place they had visited when they were younger, hoping to ease his mind and take it off the thoughts that were troubling him.   
  
They had been visiting the botanical gardens twice a year after Gozaburo's death. The cherry blossom festivities had drawn many a family there, for a picnic in the gardens that were opened to the general public during this time of year. Obviously, Seto had resented it, but had never failed to have Isono pack a blanket and food and then followed his excited little imp of a brother to find the most beautiful picnic spot, glaring behind  his back at everyone who dared to stake a claim to one of Mokuba's chosen locations.   
  
They had been here a second time each autumn for the fall colors, and that usually had been a more solitary affair, people minding their own business as they were quietly trudging the maze of stony pathways, lost in thought. Today, the impending storm had scared most of the other visitors away into the safety of their homes.   
  
Seto's feet stopped mid-stride when they came up to a small pond. Its beauty was breathtaking. The shore was lined with Japanese maple trees of various colors that threatened to outshine each other in their vibrancy. The trees' reflections in the still water only intensified their resplendence. A red painted bridge led from one shore to the other, weeping willows were showering it with their long branches.   
  
Two trees stood out among the others by the splendor of their foliage and by the way they almost seemed to embrace each other with their twining branches. One sprouted leaves of glaring red, a gaping wound pouring lifeblood into the waters. The other's foliage was a wild mix of colors ranging from a golden yellow to almost purple on the edges.   
  
Seto felt his heartbeat accelerate, while his breath seemed to get stuck in his throat, vital functions contradicting each other, plunging his body into a chaotic spiral of reactions. He barely wrestled back control before the pain locked deep inside could explode and devastate. A flurry of colorful spiky leaves ripped from the tree spun in a maddening dance around him. His hand shot up and grabbed one of the  leaves out of the air, clenching his fingers around it like a cage.   
  
Mokuba stood next to him with a confused frown for long moments. At last, he seemed to realize the specific color and shape of the leaves dropping to their feet all around them as the sudden gust of wind subsided. His eyes clouded as dark as the skies and his lips pressed into a thin line.   
  
"Why him, Seto." It was more of an accusation than a question.   
  
Mokuba's words pulled him out of the haze that had threatened to overwhelm him. He turned to face his brother and placed one hand on his shoulder. "Mokuba. Do not doubt that you are the reason I am alive."   
  
Mokuba stared at the ground trying to hide that he was tearing up. "Seems that's not enough anymore."   
  
Leaves of gold,  nearly  purple and freshly spilled blood were crowding around them. Seto breathed the cold air and listened to the first rumble of thunder in the distance. "His absence is like a wound. And I don't even want it to heal because everything will become dull and dead if it closes and fades."   
  
*   
  
There was a time, after the Pharaoh's departure, that Mokuba had felt he could not reach his Niisama at all. Seto had not allowed anything to show on his face, but he had been livid. He had barely caught enough sleep to function on his usual level, not nearly enough for any other human being. There had been an invisible barrier between Seto and the rest of the world, a glass panel that only now and then his brother would shatter by unexpectedly hurling something against the nearest wall with a shout of rage. It was the only outburst he allowed himself. Mokuba would try not to wince and later pick up the shards, leaving Seto to think the staff had done it but needing to at least try and gather some of the broken pieces for his own sanity. Whatever would get Seto out of this state, Mokuba had thought, would be perfectly fine with him. He had not quite expected that to include a space station, a modified VR pod and a jump through dimensions.   
  
When Seto, during those first days, had kept repeating that he needed a rematch with Atem, Mokuba had pointed out that, since he had beaten Atem, Yugi was now carrying the title King of Games, so Seto was probably wanting the wrong person for a rematch. Seto had looked at him as if he had failed to comprehend the words, and Mokuba had sighed inwardly. Atem would never be the wrong person. He had suspected before, but he had known in that very moment, had not needed to see the dueling avatar, completed in painstaking detail a few weeks later, to understand. Furthermore, he had known in that moment there was, as usual, only one way to be the brother Seto needed: sticking with his Niisama through it all.   
  
When he entered the space lab one morning, wondering if his brother had foregone another night's sleep to immerse himself in endless calculations and  minute  adjustments, he found a tiny model pod sitting in the place of the big one. His brother had never looked kindly upon animal cruelty so Mokuba sort of hoped he was not planning to send a mouse to... wherever. Then he remembered that the next to go would be his Niisama, so he quickly changed his mind about the mouse.   
  
Seto looked up and gave him one of his rare smiles. That meant he had been making progress. "It's good you are here, Mokuba, we can do the test right away."   
  
Mokuba nodded. "Right, let's do it."   
  
His brother got up and placed something in the tiny pod. Seto straightened with a confident smirk. Mokuba swallowed. Flaming dark red interspersed with bright yellow. A maple leaf.   
  
Reading his incredulous look correctly, Seto explained, "Survival of a living body is not what I am testing. We know people have passed through dimensions unharmed but have not been able to stay there or return on their own. This," he casually pointed towards the Quantum Cube sitting almost innocently in it's place, "is a catalyst. Something that allows two compounds - dimensions, in our case - to interact, that would not normally undergo any kind of interaction. As long as it's active it should be possible to pass from one to the other and back. The universe will try to regain its former, undiffused state, which should pull the pod back to this dimension, granted that they are still interacting. I am testing when that will occur."   
  
Mokuba let out a breath he had not reali ze d he had been holding. That meant... His brother was planning his return. It was more than he had hoped for and he felt  an overwhelming urge to throw himself into Seto's arms. At the same time he wanted to laugh at how only his Niisama was able to  somehow warp magic into a scientific explanation.   
  
The pod's miniature lid closed around the slightly wilted leaf with a hissing sound. Seto stepped up to the controls but stood to the side and gestured for Mokuba to follow. "This is your place now."   
  
Elation and pride were swelling inside Mokuba's chest as always when Seto entrusted him with an important task, but at the same time he understood fully well what his brother meant: Mokuba was not only going to be at the controls during his trip through dimensions, he was also in control of everything they owned and had fought for while Seto was gone. This is your place, vice president, second in command. He activated the launch sequence.   
  
The room began to glow in golden light. Mokuba had to shield his eyes from the bright flash, and when he opened them again, no trace of the pod was left. The on-board computer stopped sending information almost immediately, the last readings they got were a confused jumble.    
  
Five hours of tense waiting had passed when the constant golden glow of the Cube intensified again and the pod reappeared right where it had vanished. Seto extracted the colorful leaf from its confines and examined it in silence. Mokuba, for lack of something better to do and quivering with anticipation, examined the pod. It seemed to be fully functional and intact but for a few cracks on the otherwise sleek and unblemished surface. Those cracks were inexplicably filled with sand. When Mokuba turned to point his discovery out to his brother, he caught a glimpse of Seto tenderly caressing the maple leaf in his hand, staring out into space.   
  
Mokuba knew he needed his brother living, not just alive. Seto needed the passion only Atem could give him.  It was not logical or wise, but it was self-evident, natural.  There was only one way for hi s brother to find calm and peace, and that was locked in eternal combat with the Pharaoh. It was as simple as that.

**Author's Note:**

> Dare I say it? I have artwork to go with this...I'm definitely NOT an artist, this is completely amateur fanart, so don't expect anything. You can find it here: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/desidera-ad-deserta


End file.
